This specification generally describes processes for establishing upgrade paths between incompatible application environments and platforms. As used by this specification, the term “environment” (or “application environment”) refers to one or more software applications, database systems, or virtual computing states, while the term “platform” refers to the underlying operating system, firmware, and hardware upon which the environment has been installed.
Due to the evolving nature of hardware and software, application environments and platforms typically need to be upgraded and updated. The term “upgrade” refers to the replacement of a product with a newer version of the same product, for example by replacing software or firmware with a newer or better version in order to bring a system up-to-date or to improve its characteristics. “Updating” refers to applying patches to fix problems with software applications or supporting data. Though upgrading and updating are intended to address problems, in certain circumstances upgrades or updates may sometimes introduce new problems.
Digital content, such as media, data, or files, that is generated within one platform or environment may not be recognized or rendered appropriately by another platform or environment. In some circumstances, the installation of a particular environment may require that digital content be migrated from another environment.
When faced with limited resources, an organization may choose to not apply upgrades or updates to software applications or application environments at the same pace as the upgrades or updates are published by the software manufacturer. Such a delay may result in a situation where no direct upgrade path exists between a legacy version of the software application and the latest version of the software application. A direct upgrade path, for example, may include one or more established or automated upgrade processes for installing new capabilities or for migrating digital content between a legacy environment or platform and an upgraded environment or platform.
When an organization chooses to not upgrade a legacy environment or platform when an update becomes available, the state of the legacy environment or platform may, in time, become ‘out of sync’ with automated upgrade processes supported by the software manufacturers. When ‘out of sync,’ an attempt to automatically upgrade the legacy environment or platform, or to migrate content to an upgraded environment or platform, may result in errors being generated by the automated upgrade process. Such errors may prevent the upgrade process from being fully completed.